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Thread: Odd plumbing leak

  1. #16
    Join Date
    Feb 2014
    Location
    Lake Gaston, Henrico, NC
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    8,973
    easiest fix is to take the toilet up, cut the top of the flange off flush with the floor or a little below, and use one of these:

    https://www.amazon.com/SIOUX-CHIEF-6...ps%2C63&sr=8-4

    I've used them, and they work fine. Just to be sure, I put some sealant around the insert after the seal is started down in the pipe. The extra sealant is probably not really necessary, but I feel better about it. I bolt the stainless flange to the floor when I can get to them like yours.

    edited to add: reviews say the stainless ring is no longer available. If not, I'd use 5/16" stainless bolts as closet bolts, fastened in place on the subfloor, independent of a plastic flange. I did many like that when I was building new houses. You just want to be sure not to over-torque the nuts holding the toilet down.
    Last edited by Tom M King; 08-19-2022 at 5:41 PM.

  2. #17
    Quote Originally Posted by Zachary Hoyt View Post
    There is no moisture outside on the upper floor, or on the side of the coupler, so I am sure it is not coming down the outside of the pipe from higher up. I dried the whole area with a rag and then looked closely with a flashlight and felt around to determine exactly where the water is coming out, and it's right where it is visible in the picture.
    I looked closely at the upper right corner of your coupling photo and I don't see any glue. I think it's harder to get good coverage of glue on larger diameters with the small dobbers. I like to glue the fitting and then the pipe and one more time on the fitting, give it a quarter turn when connection is being made. I'll use sand paper or a knife to deburr and smooth the saw edge of the pipe. ....I wouldn't be surprised if some of these sized fittings and pipe are out of round.

  3. #18
    you know if there wasn't enough glue that might explain the delayed leak. it may have held until someone got to rockin

  4. #19
    Quote Originally Posted by Zachary Hoyt View Post
    I was happy a month or so ago when I ran all the new plumbing in the house and didn't have any leaks, but today a very odd leak developed that I can't understand. It is under the upstairs toilet. There is a slow seep of clear water coming out constantly between the 3" PVC coupler and the pipe below the flange. It drips about once a minute. I dried the pipe and made sure I was seeing just where the water was coming from. It's clear that I didn't get a good glue joint on that fitting and I'll need to cut it out and replace it, but the second part that I don't understand is where the water is coming from. It seems like there shouldn't be water there except when the toilet is flushed, and then only momentarily, since the pipe is vertical. Is there something wrong inside the toilet that could allow water to be getting to the joint between the flange and the coupler and the rest of the pipe, or is capillary action somehow responsible? I'll be very grateful for any advice.
    Because you have access to joint, cut it out and redo it. Is that 4", or 3" pipe?

  5. #20
    Join Date
    Mar 2018
    Location
    Piercefield, NY
    Posts
    1,659
    3" pipe. I did use the small in-the-can applicator, and may have failed to apply enough glue. I think I twisted the joint as I pushed it together but I am not sure. I know I did twist all of them that I could, but sometimes they weren't free to twist depending what had already been glued.

  6. #21
    Join Date
    Mar 2019
    Location
    Los Angeles, California
    Posts
    961
    +1 to the group that sands the joint. Not required but a good practice.

    +1 to the group that likes purple primer, I know my City inspector liked it.

    +1 to the group that glues and twists. That is the way I was taught. It spreads the glue.
    Regards,

    Tom

  7. #22
    Join Date
    Sep 2016
    Location
    Modesto, CA, USA
    Posts
    9,879
    Glue and twist then hold for 15 seconds. On a big pipe like that hold for 30 seconds. the dabber should be at least the radius of the pipe. So for 3" use a 1.5" dabber. That means use a brush or swab or the joints will be glue starved.
    Bill D

  8. #23
    Join Date
    Nov 2021
    Location
    Mid West and North East USA
    Posts
    2,831
    Blog Entries
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    Micro fractures in the porcelain can be a frustrating thing to track down. As mentioned above, Paper towels or toilet paper are a good leak detector.
    Best Regards, Maurice

  9. #24
    Join Date
    Jan 2013
    Location
    FINGER LAKES AREA , CENTRAL NEW YORK STATE
    Posts
    259
    WARNING THE FOLLOWING IS A CRAP SHOOT (no punn intended) to eliminate your leak with a half a$$ fix

    Everything mentioned above is quite good advice. If you do not want to cut into anything or start over again there is a shot you can take to try and stop the leak. If it doesn't work then you just end up right where you are now with little expense.
    Get a repair coupling, cost typically about $6.00 cut it in half length then cut the half length in two halves (see sketch) with the finest kerf you can like a razor saw, dovetail saw etc. so you have approximately two 180 degree pieces from a half length of the coupling.
    Dry the pipe leak best you can then coat the a larger area than the 2 coupling pieces will cover with PVC primer the purple stuff. Do the same to both halves of the coupling including the face of the coupling that you will push against the leaking fitting will . After that apply a relatively heavy coating of PVC cement to the purple areas on your pipe and coupling and place the two half pieces around the pipe with the cut lines about 90 degrees around from the leak area pushing both half pieces together and up against the bottom of the leaking fitting. Hold it there for at least 30 seconds.
    It is a Rube Goldberg but if it works you are good to go as the leak is most likely an atmospheric leak and the addition of the coupling halves bonded solidly to the area may solve your problem. Good luck

    IMG_20220823_103534.jpg
    Last edited by mike calabrese; 08-23-2022 at 11:00 AM.

  10. #25
    Join Date
    Nov 2006
    Location
    Vancouver, BC
    Posts
    858
    Any chance the drain isn't vented properly? Does water stay in the bowl?

  11. #26
    Join Date
    Mar 2018
    Location
    Piercefield, NY
    Posts
    1,659
    I cut out the leaky section on Sunday and put in a new coupler and short piece of pipe and a new (and better) flange. The old flange was plastic and had to go inside a coupler, while the new one has a stainless flange on a PVC center and goes over the pipe. I bought the plastic one because they only had one metal one that day, and I needed two, but the metal kind is better, I think. I tried to get enough glue on there and to use the cleaner enough first, so I hope it will stay suitably leak free.

    I don't think venting is the problem. The toilet is wet vented by the shower at 2", and the 1.5" dry vent arm goes up from there back to the 3" main stack out the roof.

  12. #27
    Join Date
    Feb 2014
    Location
    Lake Gaston, Henrico, NC
    Posts
    8,973
    I'm sure you will never put together a leaking PVC joint again.

  13. #28
    Join Date
    Mar 2016
    Location
    Millstone, NJ
    Posts
    1,590
    The primer not only cleans but mollecularly helps bond the glue to the pvc. I did a 16 story building in PVC my first day on the job I the next 10 fittings that were going in thinking I was saving time. I ended up with a couple drips on my first unit. My foreman pointed out that if I glue the joint while the primer is still wet it wont leak. After that I ran 3 apartments a day for 2 months without a drip.

  14. #29
    Join Date
    Nov 2009
    Location
    Alaska
    Posts
    711
    I use ABS over PVC.... So much easier to work with. Slobber glue on the pipe, as well as inside the fitting. Give it a small twist and hold.

    The drip is not unusual. That water swirls all over the place with the toilet flushes. It hits the joint, then creeps through the area where the bond of melted pipe wasn't good.

  15. #30
    Join Date
    Feb 2003
    Location
    Lafayette, IN
    Posts
    4,563
    Even better than twist and hold is to twist back and forth until you feel it start to bind. Helps to have alignment marks (Sharpie), if needed. Also, don’t play around once you start applying glue—get it on there and get the joint together. The less time exposed to air, the better.

    I’ve been around plumbers who were gluing 8” PVC (air inlet for a 3M BTU condensing boiler). I’d love to see a 4” dabber! ��
    Jason

    "Don't get stuck on stupid." --Lt. Gen. Russel Honore


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